Manufacturing method of a magnetic head with use of a capillary having a recess

ABSTRACT

A magnetic head includes a metal plate having a conductive pattern, and a slider having a head element and a connecting terminal electrically connected to the head element, and fixed on the metal plate. The connecting terminal and the conductive pattern are connected by ultrasonically bonding a ball bump thereto. The ball bump has on its surface a projecting portion extending in the direction that links the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern. A bonding capillary for use in the ultrasonic bonding includes a tip section having a through hole for passing a wire therethrough. The tip section also has a recessed portion centered on the through hole, and a groove that reaches the outer surface of the tip section across the center of the recessed portion.

This application is a divisional of application Ser. No. 09/227,999, filed on Jan. 8, 1999, and now U.S. Pat. No 6,198,599B1.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a magnetic head, such as a thin-film magnetic head, which achieves improved bonding strength and stability of a ball bump for use in electrically connecting a connecting terminal of a head element and a conductive pattern for supplying an electric signal to the head element. The present invention also relates to a manufacturing method of the magnetic head, and to a bonding capillary used in the manufacturing method.

2. Description of the Related Art

FIG. 9 shows an overall configuration of a conventional thin-film magnetic head used in a hard magnetic disk device. The conventional thin-film magnetic head generally comprises a ceramic slider 1 having a head element formed of a thin film on its end face and serving to record on and reproduce information from a hard magnetic disk, a flexure 2 having flexibility and fixed at its leading end onto the underside of the slider 1 with an adhesive, an elastic load beam 3 made of stainless steel and fixed to the leading end of the flexure 2 by spot welding or the like, a mount 4 made of stainless steel and fixed to the rear and of the load beam 3 by spot welding or the like, a conductive pattern 8 mounted on the mount 4 so as to supply an electric signal to the head element, and a flexible wiring board 5 connected to the conductive pattern 8.

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12 on an end face 1 a of the slider 1 having a head element 6, four connecting terminals 7 (for recording and reproduction) made of gold-plated copper or nickel are arranged so as to establish an electrical connection with the head element 6. On the surface of the flexure 2, four conductive patterns 8, made of copper plated with gold via a polyimide resin layer, are formed, and the conductive patterns 8 are led out from the rear end of the flexure 2 to be electrically connected to the flexible wiring board 5.

The slider 1 is bonded to a tongue 2 a formed at the leading end of the flexure 2. In this case, the end 1 a of the slider 1 and the surface of the flexure 2 are orthogonal to each other, and the four connecting terminals 7 of the slider 1 are placed close to the ends of the corresponding four conductive patterns 8. Ball bumps 10 made of gold or the like are ultrasonically bonded to a corner portion 9 between the connecting terminals 7 and the conductive patterns 8 where the end face 1 a of the slider 1 and the surface of the flexure 2 intersect, thereby electrically connecting terminals 7 and the conductive patterns 8.

A projection 3 a formed at the leading end of the load beam 3 is in contact with the underside of the tongue 2 a of the flexure 2, and presses the flexure 2 having elasticity against the underside of the slider 1 at a predetermined pressure.

In the magnetic head, although not shown, the mount 4 and the slider 1 are mounted opposed to a drive arm of the hard magnetic disk device and a magnetic recording surface of the magnetic disk, respectively. During operation, the slider 1 fixed to the flexure 2 floats above the magnetic recording surface of the magnetic disk at a predetermined distance while following the flow of air because of flexibility of the flexure 2, whereby magnetic recording on and reproduction from the magnetic disk are performed by the head element 6.

Next, a description will be given of a method of manufacturing the above-described magnetic head, in particular, a method of bonding the connecting terminal 7 and the conductive pattern 8 by the ball bump 10. FIG. 13 is a side view of a bonding capillary 11 made of a high-density ceramic, such as ruby or alumina (Al₁O₃), FIG. 14 is an enlarged view showing the principal part of a tip section of the capillary 11, and FIG. 15 is an end view of the tip section of the capillary 11. The capillary 11 consists of a cylindrical body section 11 b having a through hole 11 a in its center, and a tip section 11 c that tapers off toward one end thereof. The tip section 11 c has a recessed portion lid having a conical inner surface that communicates with an open end of the through hole 11 a.

As shown in FIG. 16, a fine wire 12 made of gold is passed through the through hole 11 a in the capillary 11, and the leading end of the wire 12 projecting from the end face of the tip section 11 c is melted by electric discharge, thereby forming a ball 12 a. The ball 12 a is held by the recessed portion lid formed in the tip section 11 c.

Next, the slider 1 fixed to the flexure 2 is held on a jig or the like (not shown) at an inclined angle of 45°, and the capillary 11 is lowered to face the corner portion 9 where the end face 1 a of the slider 1 and the surface of the flexure 2 intersect, thereby bringing the ball 12 a into contact with the surfaces of the connecting terminal 7 of the slider 1 and the conductive pattern 8 of the flexure 2. Then, the capillary 11 is ultrasonically vibrated in the direction parallel to the end face 1 a of the slider 1 and the surface of the flexure 2 (orthogonal to the drawing sheet). Consequently, the ball 12 a is simultaneously bonded to both the connecting terminal 7 and the conductive pattern 8, thereby forming a ball bump 10.

Finally, the wire 12 is pulled off the ball bump 10, and the electrical connection between the connecting terminal 7 and the conductive pattern 8 by the ball bump 10 is thereby completed. On the surface of the ball bump 10, a part of the severed wire 12, as shown in FIG. 17, remains as a residual portion 10 a.

In the above-described conventional bonding method using the ball 12 a, the end of the tip section 11 c of the capillary 11 in the lowered position is prone to be displaced from the corner portion 9, where the end face 1 a of the slider 1 and the surface of the flexure 2 intersect, due to variations in positioning accuracy or other causes. For example, when the end of the tip section 11 c is displaced toward the conductive pattern 8 by a distance t, the ball 12 a held in the recessed portion 11 d of the tip section 11 c undergoes ultrasonic bonding in such a displaced state. Therefore, the ball bump 10 is bonded without contact with the connecting terminal 7 or without stable bonding strength.

Moreover, even when the ball 12 a is precisely positioned at the corner portion 9, since the contact surfaces between the ball 12 a, the connecting terminal 7 and the conductive pattern 8 are different in fractional force, the ball 12 a rotates in the recessed portion 11 d during bonding using ultrasonic vibration, which results in a prolonged bonding time, decreased bonding strength, etc.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a magnetic head having a stable structure in which a connecting terminal and a conductive pattern are bonded by a ball bump with high bonding strength, a method of manufacturing the magnetic head, and a bonding capillary used in the method.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a magnetic head including a metal plate having a conductive pattern, and a slider fixed to the metal plate and having a head element and a connecting terminal electrically connected to the head element, wherein the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern are connected by ultrasonically bonding a metal ball thereto, and wherein a projecting portion is formed on the surface of the ball bump so as to extend in the direction that links the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern. In the above magnetic head, the projecting portion serves to prevent the ball bump from rotating during bonding, which allows a reliable magnetic head to be constructed in which a connecting terminal and a conductive pattern are bonded with high bonding strength.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a magnetic head manufacturing method including the steps of: fixing a slider having a head element and a connecting terminal electrically connected to the head element onto a metal plate having a conductive pattern; forming a groove in a tip section of a capillary having a through hole so as to cross the through hole, passing a wire through the through hole, and placing a ball formed at the end of the wire into the tip section; bringing the ball into contact with the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern by moving the tip section of the capillary; and forming a ball bump by ultrasonically vibrating the capillary in the direction orthogonal to the direction of the groove and bonding the ball to the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern. In this method, even when the tip section of the capillary is displaced, the ball held in the tip section is automatically placed by the groove at a predetermined position between the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern. Moreover, a part of the ball engages into the groove during welding, and the ball is thereby prevented from rotating, which permits firm bonding to be efficiently performed in a short time.

In the above-described magnetic head manufacturing method of the present invention, it is preferable that the value obtained by dividing the width of the groove by the diameter of the ball be greater than ⅙ and less than ½. In this case, more reliable bonding can be achieved.

According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a bonding capillary wherein a tip section having a through hole for passing a wire therethrough is provided with a recessed portion centered on the through hole, and a groove that reaches the outer surface of the tip section across the center of the recessed portion. This bonding capillary permits increases in bonding strength and reliability.

Further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiment with reference to the attached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an enlarged perspective view showing the principal part of a magnetic head according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of a capillary according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing the principal part of a tip section of the capillary shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an end view of the tip section of the capillary;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a bonding method using the capillary of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a bonding state of a ball bump according to the present invention;

FIGS. 7A to 7D are end views showing the forms of tips of four types of capillaries used in bonding experiments;

FIG. 8 is a graph showing the shear strengths depending on the tip forms of the capillaries as results of the bonding experiments;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a conventional magnetic head;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the state of connection between a slider and a metal plate in the conventional magnetic head;

FIG. 11 is a plan view of the magnetic head shown in FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a side view of the magnetic head shown in FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a side view of a conventional capillary;

FIG. 14 is an enlarged sectional view showing the principal part of a tip section of the conventional capillary;

FIG. 15 is an end view of the tip section of the conventional capillary;

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a bonding method using the conventional capillary: and

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing the bonding state of a conventional ball bump.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the attached drawings.

FIG. 1 is an enlarged perspective view showing the principal part of a magnetic head according to the present invention. A ceramic slider 21 is bonded with an epoxy adhesive or the like onto a surface of a flexible metal plate 22 made of stainless steel (e.g., a flexure), where four conductive patterns 28 are formed. Formed on one end face 21 a of the slider 21 are a head element (not shown) and four connecting terminals 27 that are electrically connected to the head element. The conductive patterns 28 and the connecting terminals 27, correspond to each other, and are electrically connected by ultrasonically bonding ball bumps 30 to a corner portion 29 where the end face 21 a of the slider 21 is at right angles to the surface of the metal plate 22. Each of the ball bumps 30 has on its surface a residual portion 30 a that remains after a wire, which will be described later, is pulled off, and a projecting portion 30 b extending on both sides of the residual portion 30 a in the direction that links the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28.

Although not shown, the metal plate 22 is welded to a load beam fixed to a mount, in a manner similar to the above-described conventional example. The mount allows the entire magnetic head to be assembled into a magnetic disk device.

FIGS. 2 to 4 show a bonding capillary 31 made of a high-density ceramic, such as ruby or alumina, that is employed in the present invention. This capillary 31, similarly to the conventional example, consists of a cylindrical body section 31 b having a through hole 31 a in its center, and a tip section 31 c that tapers off toward one end thereof. The tip section 31 c includes a recessed portion 31 d having a conical inner face that communicates with the open end of the through hole 31 a, and a linear groove 31 e that reaches the outer peripheral surface of the tip section 31 c across the center of the recessed portion 31 d. The extending direction of the groove 31 e is previously set to be orthogonal to the direction of vibration of the capillary 31.

While the bore of the through hole 31 a in the tip section 31 c varies depending on the form of the wire, it is set at, for example, approximately 40 μm to 50 μm. The recessed portion 31 d is countersunk toward the open end at a taper angle of approximately 90°. While the depth of the recessed portion 31 d varies depending on the diameter of the ball bump 30, it is set at, for example, approximately 10 μm to 40 μm. The width of the groove 31 e is approximately 30 μm to 50 μm. While the end of the tip section 31 c is curved at the outer peripheral edge, it may be tapered as necessary.

With reference to FIG. 5, a description will be given of a method of connecting (bonding) the connecting terminal 27 of the slider 21 and the conductive pattern 28 of the metal plate 22 using the above-described capillary 31.

First, a fine wire 32 made of gold or the like is passed through the through hole 31 a of the capillary 31, and one end of the wire 32 is melted by means of thermal energy produced by electric discharge or the like, thereby forming a ball 32 a. The ball 32 a is held by the recessed portion 31 d formed in the tip section 31 c of the capillary 31.

Next, the metal plate 22 provided with the slider 22 is placed on a jig or the like (not shown) at an inclined angle of 45°, and the capillary 31 is positioned so that the ball 32 a lies at the corner portion 29 where the end face 21 a of the slider 21 and the surface of the metal plate 22 intersect at right angles. Then, the capillary 31 is lowered toward the corner portion 29. In this case, the groove 31 e formed in the tip section 31 c is oriented to face both the surfaces of the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28.

Next, the tip section 31 c of the capillary 31 is ultrasonically vibrated in the direction parallel to the surfaces of the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28 (perpendicularly to the drawing sheet), that is, in the direction orthogonal to the direction of the groove, 31 e of the tip section 31 c. Thereby the ball 32 a is ultrasonically bonded to the contact surfaces of the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28 to form a ball bump 30. Consequently, an electrical connection between the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28 is established.

At this bonding, even if the lowered position of the end of the tip section 31 c is displaced by a distance t from the corner portion 29 due to variations in positioning accuracy, since the groove 31 e decreases the force for holding the ball 32 a at the recessed portion 31 d of the tip section 31 c in the direction toward the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28, the ball 32 a is automatically placed at the corner portion 29 along the surfaces of the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28. As a result, it is possible to reliably bond the ball 32 a with high positioning accuracy, and to thereby provide the ball bump 30, as shown in FIG. 6.

Furthermore, the upper side of the ball 32 a deforms because of ultrasonic energy, and partially engages in the groove 31 e of the tip section 31 c. The rotation of the ball 32 a is thereby prevented, which ensures efficient and stable bonding to the contact surfaces.

Finally, the capillary 31 is raised, so that the tip section 31 c separates from the ball bump 30, and simultaneously, the wire 32 is pulled off the ball bump 30. Thereby the electrical connection between the connecting a terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28 is completed. As a result, the surface of the ball bump 30 is provided with the residual portion 30a of the severed wire 32, and the projecting portion 30b formed by the engagement of the ball 32 a into the groove 31 e shown in FIG. 1. The projecting portion 30 b extends in the direction that links the connecting terminal 27 and the conductive pattern 28.

Experiments were conducted on advantages of the groove formed in the tip section of the capillary. The results of the experiments will now be described in connection with the embodiment of the present invention and comparative examples. FIGS. 7A to 7D are end views showing the shapes of tip sections of four types of capillaries. FIG. 7A shows a conventional example in which no groove is formed, FIG. 7B shows the embodiment of the present invention in which the groove 31 e extends in the direction orthogonal to the direction of vibration of the capillary 31 (as shown in the FIGS. by the two-headed arrow), FIG. 7C shows Comparative Example 1 in which a cross-shaped groove 31 f is formed in a direction both parallel and orthogonal to the vibrating direction of the capillary 31, and FIG. 7D shows Comparative Example 2 in which a groove 31 g extends in the same direction as the vibrating direction of the capillary 31. In these experiments, the through holes 11 a and 31 a of the capillaries 11 and 31, respectively, are 46 μm in diameter, and the grooves 31 e, 31 f, and 31 g are 30 μm in width.

The connecting terminal and the conductive pattern were bonded by ultrasonically vibrating, without heating from the outside, the capillaries having the above-described shapes with a ball held at the leading end thereof in the directions of the arrows in FIGS. 7A, to 7D (up and down in the plane of the drawing), that is, in parallel with the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern. Thirty samples were produced for each of the capillaries, and the bonding properties of these samples were compared. The results of the comparisons are shown in the following Table 1:

TABLE 1 GROOVE SHAPE AND BONDING PROPERTIES Ball Bonding Bonding rotation Shear positioning positioning Groove shape prevention strength ease accuracy Conventional C B B A Example Embodiment A A A A Comparative A C C C Example 1 Comparative B C C C Example 2

In Table 1, A indicates that the property is good, B indicates that the property is normal, and C indicates that the property is undesirable. The evaluation item “ball rotation prevention” was evalulated by visually observing the motion of the ball during bonding. “Shear strength” was evaluated by measuring the force (gf) applied in parallel to the bonding surface of the ball bump until the ball bump is severed. FIG, 8 is a graph showing the average shear strengths measuring corresponding to the respective groove shapes. As this graph shows, the average shear strength in strengths measured corresponding to the respective groove this embodiment of the present invention exhibits the highest value of 170 gf, which is about 1.7 times as high as that of the Coventional Example.

In Comparative Examples 1 and 2, a groove extend in the same direction as the vibrating direction of the capillary, and therefore, the ball retreats in the vibrating direction, that is, in the direction parallel to the connecting terminal and the conductive pattern. This can be considered as a cause of deterioration of the strength, ease of positioning, and positioning accuracy in boding.

In addition, experiments were conducted on the relationship between bonding properties and grooves of varying widths that extend orthogonal to the vibrating direction of the capillary as in this embodiment shown in FIG. 7B. The experimental results are shown in the following Table 2. The diameter of the ball used in these experiments is 120 μm, and the width of the groove varies in six steps of 10 μm, from 10 μm to 60 μm.

TABLE 2 GROOVE WIDTH AND BONDING PROPERTIES Ball Bonding Bonding Groove rotation Shear positioning positioning width prevention strength ease accuracy 10 μm C B B A 20 μm B B B A 30 μm A A A A 40 μm XA XA A A 50 μm A A A A 60 μm A B A C

In Table 2, XA indicates that the property is very good, A indicates that the property is good, B indicates that the property is normal, and C indicates that the property is undesirable. In the case of the groove width of 10 μm, the “ball rotation prevention” property is substantially as undesirable as that of the conventional case in which the groove is not formed, because the width is too small. When the groove width is 60 μm, “bonding positioning accuracy” is low, because the width is too large and the ball retreats in the direction of the groove. The above results reveal that good properties can be achieved when the value obtained by dividing the groove width by the diameter of the ball is greater than ⅙ and less than ½.

While the present invention has been described with reference to what is presently considered to be the preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment. The invention is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A magnetic head manufacturing method, comprising the steps of: fixing a slider having a head element and a connecting terminal electrically connected to said head element onto a metal plate having a conductive pattern; forming a groove in a tip section of a capillary having a through hole so as to cross said through hole, passing a wire through said through hole, and placing a ball formed at the end of said wire into said tip section; bringing said ball into contact with said connecting terminal and said conductive pattern by moving said tip section of said capillary into a corner area adjacent to said connecting terminal and said conductive pattern, by contacting one of said connecting terminal and said conductive pattern with said ball, and by moving said ball along said groove so as to simultaneously contact both said connecting terminal and said conductive pattern; and forming a ball bump by ultrasonically vibrating said capillary in the direction orthogonal to the direction of said groove and by bonding said ball to said connecting terminal and said conductive pattern.
 2. A magnetic head manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein a value obtained by dividing the width of said groove by the diameter of said ball is greater than ⅙ and less than ½.
 3. A magnetic head manufacturing method according claim 1, wherein the ball is prevented from being rotated during the step of forming a ball bump by ultrasonically vibrating said capillary in the direction orthogonal to the direction of said groove. 